Mrs. Kravitz

Do you remember Gladys Kravitz from Bewitched? The nosey buttinsky neighbor, she is living next door to me, times a thousand. Mrs. Kravitz, AKA my neighbor, stops by daily to see what I am doing. She brings her granddaughter, who is Lily's age, and drops her off to play. No invitation, just a knock on the door and a here is my granddaughter.

Her granddaughter is scared of my dog, so I have to put the dog out back while the granddaughter is over playing. At first I thought this was OK, because Lily loves her granddaughter and they play together nicely. But, she wont listen to me. Mrs. Kravitz often sends her 30 year old son who lives with her over to fetch the granddaughter. The 30 yo son wont come in the house to get her, he refuses to enter my house as if I have cooties, and just waits on my front porch. I spend 15 or 20 minutes trying to convince the child to leave, she ignores me. I finally picked her up and handed her to her uncle and shut the door. She left behind a barbie which I have not returned.

Now I find myself hiding in my house. I have planted some flower seeds out front, hoping to grow a patch of lovely wild flowers, they have to be kept moist. I used to gently water them three times a day, now I am afraid to go outside. Sometimes I pretend not to see her and but she will call my name 30 times trying to get my attention. I am starting to think the reason I don't have any friends is because I am anti-social.

One time when Mrs. Kravitz brought over her granddaughter unannounced she decided to stay and chat. She spent an hour telling Jeff and I about her religious convictions. She has decided that Katrina did not destroy her things because God loves her and protected his favorite people. It is now her job to witness to us heathens that if we are good little Christians like her God will protect us as well. I think this is the conversation which made me feel uncomfortable around her. She also told us that the reason no one likes her is because she is black and her husband is white. She says that this is both of their second marriages, that his family including kids, and her family including kids are very upset about their union. The she goes to a white church and no one will even make eye contact with her because of her race. She has been married to her husband for many years, I forget how many but you would think that they would be over the race thing by now. Anyways, I think it is more her very imposing personality? But, what do I know about racism? I grew up in California and not the South, it is very different here, some people act like it is still 1862, you would be shocked, I am shocked all the time. But really Mrs. Kravitz I don't like you because you are rude. Jeff and I sat there for an hour listening to this stuff.

She also likes to tell me all about her job, and how much money she makes and how many lovely things she is planning on buying for herself. She is a "career woman" or so she says. She is a Realtor who seems to always be at home, or at least every time I go outside. I think she sits at her window like the Mrs. Kravitz from Bewitched waiting for me to leave my house. Sometimes she needs a break from her granddaughter, who she volunteers to watch, because her daughter works nights. This means that because I don't work it is my job to relieve her when she needs a break, because I am not a "career woman" I guess that means I am a no body, neighborhood kid watcher for free.

She does invite Lily over to play. But, I know this will show you how crazy I am, but I don't let my three year old go play in the house of a relative stranger. I don't even know their last name for heaven's sake. I will confess to you that Lily has never been cared for by anyone but Jeff, Mandy and I. (Except one time a really close friend of mine kept her for a couple of hours but only once). I realize that this is crazy, but we just moved here and don't really know anyone. Plus, we have a 16 year old who lives with us who can watch her sister. I really can't say how much of this is me not trusting anyone and how much is just circumstances.

What I really want is to make friends with my other neighbors, the ones like me, who don't show up and drop off their kids with a stranger. I guess the grass is always greener. To be fair to Dixie (my favorite native Mississippian), Mrs. Kravitz is from Michigan and not a native Mississippian - none of the natives have shown up at my door uninvited. They do wave when they drop by or introduce themselves if we happen to be outside at the same time.

What about you, do you have any crazy annoying neighbors?